house, where he drank so freely that he fell asleep, and the woman robbing him of his watch and money, made her escape. The gentleman awaking when Angier returned, charged him with the robbery, in consequence of which he was committed to prison, but was afterwards discharged, the grand jury not finding the bill against him. Soon after his wife was indicted for robbing a gentleman of his watch and a guinea, but was fortunate enough to be acquitted for want of evidence. The following accident happened about the same time: Awoman named Turner had drank so much at Angier's house that he conducted her up to bed; but while he was in the room with her, his wife entered in a rage, and demanding of her how she could presume to keep company with her husband, attacked and beat the woman. William Duce being in the house, went up to interfere; but the distur bance was by this time so great, that it was necessary to send for a constable. The o cer no sooner arrived, than Mrs. Turner charged Angier and his wife with robbing her; on which they were taken into custody, and committed; but when they were brought to trial, they were acquitted, as there was no proof of any robbery, to the satisfaction of the jury. Dyer, who was evidence against Duce and Butler, lived at this time with Angier as a waiter; and the master and the man used occasionally to commit foot pad robberies together; for which they were several times apprehended, and tried at the Old Bailey; but acquitted, as the prosecutors could not swear to their persons. Angier's character now grew so notorious, that no person of any reputation would be seen in his house; and the expences attending his repeated prosecutions were so great, that he was compelled to decline business. After this, he

kept

kept a gin-shop in Short's-gardens, Diury-lane; and this house was frequented by company of the same kind as those he had formerly entertained, particularly parson Lindsey. Lindsey having prevailed on a gentleman to go to this house, made him drunk, and then robbed him of several valuable articles; but procuring himself to be admitted an evidence, charged Angier and his wife with the robbery: they had again the good fortune to escape, the character of Lindsey being at this time so infamous, that the court and jory paid no regard to any thing he said. Soon after, however, Mrs. Angier was transported for picking a gentleman's pocket, and her husband was convicted on two capital indictments; the one for robbing Mr. Lewin, the city marshal, near Hornsey, of ten guineas and some silver, and the other for robbing a waggoner, near Knightsbridge. On both these trials, Dyer, who was concerned in the robberies, was admitted an evidence against Angier. After conviction, he was visited by numbers of persons, whose pockets had Been picked of valuable articles, in the hope of getting some intelligence of the property they had lost; but he said, he was never guilty of such mean practices as picking of pockets, and all his associates were above it, except one Hugh Kelly, who was transported for robbing & woman of a shroud, which she was carrying home to cover her deceased husband." He suffered at Tyburn, September 9,

1723.

ANSEL, JAMES. See WALTHAM BLACKS,

THE.

ARAM, EUGENE, (MURDERER,) a man of considerable erudition, which he acquired under great disadvantages, and who was also remarkable for his unhappy fate, and the singular circumstances

that

that occasioned and attended it, was born at Ramsgill, a little village, in Netherdale, Yorkshire, in the year 1704. He was descended from an ancient family, but his father was in no higher station than that of a gardener, though of great merit in that occupation. He was removed, when very young, together with his mother, to Skelson, near Newby; and, when he was five or six years old, his father making a little purchase, in Bondgate, near Rippon, his family went thither. He was there sent to school, where he learned to read the New Testament in English, which was all he was ever taught, except that, some considerable time after, he was under the tuition of the Rev. M. Alcock, of Burnsal, for about a month. When he was about thirteen or fourteen years of age, he went to his father in Newby, and attended him in the family there, till the death of Sir Edward Blackett. It was in the house of this gentleman, to whom his father was gardener, that his propensity for literature first appeared. He was, indeed, always of a solitary disposition, and uncommonly fond of retirement and books; and here he enjoyed all the advantages of leisure and privacy. He applied himself at first chiefly to mathematical studies, in which he made a considerable proficiency. At about sixteen years of age, he was sent to London to the house of Mr. Christopher Blackett, whom he served for some time in the capacity of book-keeper. After continuing here a year, or more, he was taken with the small pox, and suffered severely under that distemper. He afterwards returned into Yorkshire, in consequence of an invitation from his father, and there continued to prosecute his studies, but found in polite literature much greater charms than in the mathematics; which occasioned him now chiefly to apply himself

to